Needle loom for y tapes



June 9, 1964 o. FIRING 3,136,343

NEEDLE LOOM FOR Y TAPES Filed April l2, 1962 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOROsborne 757m :1 9

ATTORNEY June 9, 1964 o. FIRING NEEDLE LOOM FOR Y TAPES 6 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed April l2, 1962 lNvENToR ATTORNEY Osborne 'Fifi June 9, 1964 o.FIRING NEEDLE LooM FOR Y TAPES 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 12, 1962 imfw lNvENToF: Osborne 'Fir' BY @-/f/k wel ATTORNEY June 9, 1964 Q FIRING3,136,343

NEEDLE LOOM FOR Y TAPES Filed April 12 1962 e sheets-sheet 4 June 9,1954 o. FIRING 3,136,343

NEEDLE LOOM FOR Y TAPES Filed April l2, 1962 y 6 sheets-sheet 5 a O o: mg 'El ATTORNEY June 9, 1964 o. FIRING NEEDLE LooM FOR Y TAPES esheets-sheet e Filed April l2, 1962 ///////////HHH IH||H\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ @lo @Dj E@ //////////l/HIHHIIIH\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\United States Patent O 3,136,343 NEEDLE LOOM FOR Y TAPES Osb'orneFiring, Sherman Hill, Woodbury, Conn. Filed Apr. 12, 1962, Ser. No.187,090 3 Claims. (Ci. 139-424) My invention relates to needle looms andparticularly to improvements in such looms which will make them usefulfor weaving a tape of Y-shaped cross-section.

My invention is shown as embodied in a needle loom of the type shown inmy pending application Serial Number 826,667 tiled July 13, 1959, nowPatent 3,066,703 dated December 4, 1962, but the invention herein is notlimited to that or any other specific needle loom.

Needle looms using a continuous supply of weft yarn have come intocommon use in the manufacture of narrow fabrics and especially in themanufacture of tapes for zipper fasteners. Such looms have thewell-known advantages of high speed and continuous operation.Heretofore, however, they have been considered feasible only in themanufacture of flat tapes, with or Without one or more cords Woven intoone edge. k

A large number of zippers are now being manufactured from plasticfilament which is shaped into a coil or other suitable shape, and thenapplied to a tape. A tape of Y-shaped cross-section with the continuousplastic fastener element inserted between the flaps of the Y, which apscan be switched -together through the plastic fastener element, has beenfound to produce a very satisfactory fastener assembly.

The manufacture of Y section tapes has heretofore been accomplished only.on shuttle-type looms involving costly complications and reduced speedof operation. The general object of my invention, therefore, is toprovide relatively inexpensive modications in existing needle loomswhich will enable them to make tapes of Y-shape cross-section. Anotherobject is to weave a Y-shaped tape without substantial loss incapability of speed of such looms.

In the accompanying drawings, I have shown for purpose of illustration,one embodiment which the invention may assume in practice. In thesedrawings:

FIG. l is a perspective view of a Y-shaped tape resulting from myimproved loom;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic View showing four different positions of theweft laying needle and knitting needle with the corresponding variationsin the shed;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view in perspective indicating one example of aweave in the finished product;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of my improved loom;

FIG. 5 is a vertical section taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 6 is a horizontal section on line 6-6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-section on line 7 7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-section on line S--S of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a partial plan view on an enlarged scale of the centralportion of the loom;

FIG. l0 is a partial perspective view showing the knitting needle inaction;

FIG. 1.1 is a transverse section through the laying needle;

FIG. 12 is a detail in horizontal section showing the knitting needledrive;

FIG. 13 is a detail view in horizontal section showing one position ofthe wobble plate for oscillating the weft laying needle; and,

FIG. 14 is a similar view showing another position.

The working parts of the loom are supported by a boxlike casting orframe which is open at the bottom and which has a flat top wall 1,sidewalls 2 and 3 and front and back walls 4 and 5, respectively.Journalled in suit- Mice able bearings in the sidewalls 2 and 3 is themain drive shaft 6 which is power-driveny through the pulley 7..

For operating part of the warp harnesses, there is a shaft 8 journalledin bearings attached to the sidewalls 2 and 3 which is driven by thegear 9 on the main shaft 6, meshing with the gear 10 keyed to the shaft8 as best seen in FIG. 6. The ratio of this gearing is 1 to 2 so thatthe shaft 8 turns at half the speed of the main shaft.

On the opposite side toward the front wall 4, there is a secondharness-operating shaft 11, also supported in bearings carried by thesidewalls 2 and 3 and driven by reduction gearing at the left side ofthe machine, involving gears 12, 13, 14 and 15 so that the shaft 11 isdriven at one-half the speed of the shaft 8 or in other Words,onequarter the speed of the main shaft 6. Gear 12 is keyed to shaft 8,gears 13 and 14 are locked together and idle on the main shaft whilegear 15 meshing with gear 14, is keyed to the slower movingharness-operating shaft 11.

Weft Laying Needle Action The weft laying needle 16 is attached to Ianarm 17 which curves downwardly and towards the center line of the loomwhere it is connected to a vertical shaft 18. This shaft (see FIG. 5) isjournalled in suitable bearings 19 which are fixed in a hub 20 that ispart of a lever 21. As best seen in FIG. 6, this lever is H-shapedhaving on the fulcrum end one ann 22 pivoted on a pin 23 projecting fromthe front wall 4, and the other arm 24 pivoted on a pin 2S projectingfrom the back wall 5 of the frame.

The needle-carrying shaft 1S derives an oscillating'motion about its ownaxis through a suitable mechanical movement from the main shaft 6 sothat there is one complete oscillation to project the needle into andretract it from the shed during each revolution of the main shaft. Thismechanical movement may take the form of a wobble plate mechanism whichutilizes a cylindrical actuator 26 keyed to the main shaft 6 with thegeometrical axis of the cylindrical actuator at a substantial angle tothe shaft. Surrounding this actuator is a box-like follower 27 which hasvertical side plates 28 and 29 fastened to a block on one end of theneedle-carrying shaft 18 and at the other end, to a suitable spacerblock. The spacing of the plates 28 and 29 correspond to the diameter ofthe actuator 2 6 so that as the shaft rotates (for example, from theposition shown in FIG. 13 to the position shown in FIG. 14), theneedle-carrying shaft 18 will turn through an angle proportionate to theangle between the axis of the actuator and the main shaft. i

Simultaneously with the oscillating movement of the weft laying needle16, a toeand-fro movement is imparted to the needle by anothermechanical movement between the H-shaped lever 21 and the main shaft 6.This may be accomplished by an eccentric 30 on the main shaft turning ina suitable bearing in the central portion of a yoke 31. The oppositepin-shaped ends 32 and 33 of yoke 31 have slidable and rotatableconnection with the forward arms 34 and 35, respectively of the H-shapedlever 21. Thus, as the main shaft 6 turns, the lever 21 will be rockedabout the pins 23 and 25 to give the weft needle 16 a slight movementtoward and away from the fell of the fabric. It will be noted that thepivot axis of the lever 21 during this rocking motion is directly belowthe line of the weaving or the fell of the fabric so that even thoughthe rocking motion of the lever 21 moves the weft needle through aslight arc, the vertical component of the motion is so slight as to beof no consequence.

Knitting Needle Action The knitting needle 36 is mounted to reciprocatealong one side of the shed and carries a hook 37 at one end which picksup the loop of the weft thread that has been projected through the shedby the weft needle 16 and loops or knits it with a previously caughtloop. The knitting needle is guided in a slot 3d of a block 39 which isattached to a bracket 40 mounted on top of the machine. (See FIGS. 5, 7,10 and 12.)

The longitudinal reciprocation of the needle V36 is accomplished by arotating disc 41 having an eccentric groove'42 in which is engaged theprojection 43 of the knitting needle. Thedisc i1 is attached to ahorizontal shaft 44 which is driven by beveled gearing 45 from avertical shaft 46, which in turn is connected by beveled gearing 47 to aspur gear 48 keyed to a shaft e9 extending through the end wall 3. Gear4S meshes with gear 5t) keyed to the slower moving harness-operatingshaft 11 and the ratio of the gearing from shaft 11 to theneedle-operating shaft 44 is such that the needle .36"has one completereciprocation for each complete turn of the main shaft 6.

Means are also provided for shifting the hook end of the knitting needle36 up and down in a vertical direction so that on one forward movement,it will pass over the weft needle 16 while on the next forward movement,it will pass under the weft needle. This is accomplished by a gear 51 onthe main shaft 6 which meshes with a gear 52 rotatably mounted on asuitable bracket 53 and the ratio is such that gear 52 turns at half thespeedk of the main shaft 6 (see FIGS. 5 and 10'). A shift link S4 hasits lower end connected to a pin S eccentrically mounted on the side ofthe gear S2. The upper end of this Vlink is guided on a stationary pin56 passing through a slot Sea in the link, and there is also a hole 57through which the needle 36 extends.

Power Feeds for Filer Threads and Finished Tape Two separate llerthreadsF1 and F2 are supplied from any suitable continuous source, such as apair of spools, and they are positively fed by a single narrow feedroller 58 against which they are held by a spring-urged idler roller 59.

Asseen in FIG. 8, the feed roller 58 is mounted at the end of a verticalshaft 6i) which is driven by helical gearing 61 and 62 from theharness-operating shaft 8. From the roller 58, thread F1 passes throughan eye 63 from the top to the bottom of the needle, thence along thethin section 64 of the needle to the eye 65 at the forward end of theneedle, through which it passes upwardly, and in FIGS. 2a, 9 and l0, thefiller thread F1 is being held by the hook 37 of the knitting needle 36.The other iiller thread F2 goes from the feed roller 58 to the 'same eye63, passing from the bottom to the top of the needle, then along the topsurface of the thin section 64 and downwardly through the front eye 65.The thin section 64 joins the thicker body section of the laying needle16 in such a way as to provide upper and lower shoulders, therebyproviding upper and lower guide channels for filler threads F1 and F2,respectively. This construction isV shown clearly in FIGS. l() and 1l.The position of the thread F1 as it leaves the eye 65 is, of course,indicated only diagrammatically. It will be understood that when threadF1 passes from the bottom side of the needle to the upper side,-it willform a loop on such upper side and similarly, when the thread F2 passesfrom the top to the bottom, it

will form a loop on the bottom side of the needle, and it` is theseloops which are .engaged alternately by the knitting needle hook 37. Itis not necessary to provide any special means for spacing either of theweft threads at this point from its respective side of the needle toform a sucient loop to be caught by the hook 37. The portion of threadF1 between the eye 65 and the fabric will,- in the position shown inFIG. l0, pass over the relatively thick section of the needle, as seenin FIGS. and l1, to space the thread slightly from the thin section atthe end of the laying needle. In practice, of course, this hook is verythin so that it readily slips'under .the thread on either ofthe upper orlower sides of the needle. It will also be evident that the upperand'lower guide channels to which reference has been made, will guidetheir respective threads only between the eyes 63 and 65, but not afterthey pass through the eye 65. The laying needle, in its return movementfrom the shed, moves away from the fell of the fabric, as is morethoroughly explained in my issued patent referred to above.

At this time, since thread F2 was not caught on the preceding movementthrough the shed, the slack must be taken up by the long arm 66 mountedon a light coil spring 67 and carrying an eye 68 through which thethread passes. A similar slack take-up device is provided for the fillerthread Fl with along arm 69 mounted on a light coil spring '7G andcarrying the eye 71.

The means for positively feeding the finished tape T from the machine,and it may be called the take-up device,

v is power-driven from the shaft 49 which extends from the gear 4d tothe side of the machine and carries a worm 72 meshing with worm gears 73and 74 connected to the feed rolls 7S and 76, respectively. The tape Tpasses over the top of roll 75 and under roll 76 against which it may beheld by any suitable idler roller 77.

Warp H andlng Considering rst the harnesses which are operated by theslower running shaft 11, the desired number of jacks 7S (herein foursuch jacks) are in the form of vertical rods slidable through suitablebearings in the top wall of the frame and carrying at their upper endU-shaped heddle frames 79 between which the desired number of heddlesare supported for weaving the Y sectionof the tape, one such heddlebeing indicated at Si) in FIG. 8. These heddles are arranged near thatside of the shed opposite the knitting needle 36.

Each of the rods or jacks 7 8 is attached at its lower end to arectangularly shaped slide 81, one of the slides 81 appearing in FIG.8.- Each slide operates in a vertical fixed groove 82 in the front wall4 and a vertical fixed `groove 3 formed on a block Siicast integrallywith the frame. Each of these slides 81 is operated in the desired timedsequence by suitable box cams, one of which 85 appears in FIG. 8. Eachslide carries a roller follower 86 engaging in a heart-shaped groove ineach cam so that the harnesses are driven both upwardly and downwardlyin a positive manner from the shaft V11. These cams are designed so asto provide a substantial dwell at each ex treme position of the shed,one dwell being about three times the length of the other. Each of theslides has its own operating carn so that Various types of weaves may beproduced by arranging the cams to operate the liardv nesses as desired.g

On the other side, there are four similar jacks 87 operated from theshaft 3 by slides 88 and plate cams 89 engaging between'two rollerfollowers 39a, the up-and down movement being twice as frequent as inthe case of the first four jacks 78 and the dwell times being equal;

thus the jacks 37 will move up for each complete cycle Vare rigidly heldin cantilever fashion, each by a single jack and the frames may bespaced only half the distance apart as in other looms, resulting in amore compact arrangement, and one which lends itself better to highVspeed operation. While only four jacks 87 and four harnesses are shownon this side of the loom, which are suiiicient for a plain weave, moremay be employed if desired, for any particular kind of a weave in thebody ofthe tape.

Operation The Y-section tape may be described as having a iiat bodyportion 9h and two Wing portions 91 and 92 alongv one edge. One type ofweave by which-this Y-section tape may be Vmade is indicated in FIG. 3.One set of warps 93, herein shown, as six in number, extends lengthwisethroughout one of the wing sections while another set of warps 94extends through the other wing, while the,

warps in the main body of the tape are indicated at 95.

Weft thread F2 is interwoven with the warps 93 in the lower wing section92 and across the body 90 of the tape to the knitted selvage edge 96. Asis always the case in a needle loom, the weft threads lay in pairs inthe finished tape since the laying needle must project a loop of threadthrough the shed which is caught by the knitting needle and loopedintorthe preceding loop. The weft thread F2 then skips a course andagain enters the shed formed by the lower warps 93 and intermediatethese courses, passes the other weft thread F1 which is interwoven rstwith the upper warps 94 and then with the warps 95 in the body of thetape. The loops of the weft threads F2 and F1 thus alternate through thelength of the tape, and there will be only half as many weft threads ineach of the wing sections as in the body of the tape, but this isdesirable in the intended use of the tape to avoid excessive bulkinessin the wing sections.

The manner in which the weave is accomplished is best shown in thediagrammatic View FIG. 2 which shows four positions-a, b, c and a'. Thatportion of the tape to the right of the indicated vertical center lineforms the wing sections 91 and 92 which will indicate the upper andlower wings respectively, while that portion to the left of the centerline indicates the solid body portion 90 of the tape. The warps to theright of the center line will be considered as two groups: the first ofwhich is sectioned and shaded, and the second being open and not shadedor sectioned. The warps in the body portion of the tape to the left areindicated by a cross. The group of warps 94 shown in section may also bereferred to odd-numbered warps; that is l-3-5-7 etc. moving from left toright as seen in FIG. 2, whereas the even-numbered warps 93 form thebottom wing section.

In the rst position designated a, the weft needle 16 has projected aloop of weft thread F1 through the warps 94 and 95 and after beingcaught by the knitting needle 36, the laying needle 16 retracts from theshed and the lower portion of the warp group 94 moves to the up positionwhere it holds the weft F1 in a position slightly above the level of theshed as indicated in the b position of FIG. 2. At the same time,alternate threads of the other or 93 group of warps move upwardly. InFIG. 2b, these are warps positioned 4-8-12 etc. This forms a shed withthe lower portion of the 93 group indicated as having positions 2-6-10etc. At this b position, the laying needle 16 has projected a doubleweft F2 through the shed formed by group 93 warps so that a loop isformed on the bottom side of the thin end section 97 of the layingneedle 16. In the interval, the knitting needle will have been shifteddownwardly by the link 54 as explained in conjunction with FIG. 10. Inthis position, the knitting needle will catch a loop of the weft F2 andknit it with the previously caught loop of weft thread F1.

In moving to the c position, the shed formed by the 94 group of warpsyis reversed so that whereas threads numbered 1-59 etc. were on thebottom in position a, they are now shifted to the top and threads 3-7-11etc. have shifted from top to bottom. This completes the interweaving ofthe weft thread F1 which has been projected through the shed in positiona. In position c, weft F1 is again projected through the shed whichforms the upper wing section where it is caught by the knitting needlein its top position and after the laying needle retreats from positionc, alternate threads of the 93 group, numbered 2-6-10 etc., are shiftedupwardly to complete the interlocking of the F2 weft which has beenprojected in the b position.

In the d position, the laying needle projects the F2 thread through there-formed shed of group 93 warps where it is again caught by theknitting needle 36 which has shifted to its lower position.

It will be understood that in the positions b and d, the 94 group ofwarps, together with F1 weft, will be held to the upper side of thelaying needle or upper side of the shed, so as not to interfere with theforming and reforming of the shed of the 93 warps for the lower Wingsection. Likewise, in positions a and c, the entire 93 group of warps isheld down or to the lower side of the laying needle and the shed so thatthey will not interfere with the forming and re-forming of the shed of94 warps in the upper wing section. This is accomplished by thepreviously mentioned long dwell on the cams so as to provide a three toone cam ratio.

Since the warps 95 in the body portion of thek tape are handled bydifferent sets of harnesses, they can be considered to form a shed intransverse alignment with both of the sheds formed by groups 93 and 94warps.

As a result of my invention, it will be evident that a Y tape can beproduced on a loom employing only a single laying needle handling twoseparate weft threads and a single knitting needle which requires only asimple additional movement. Thus Y tapes of good quality can be producedvery economically.

What I claim is:

1. In a needle loom of the class described, the combination of (a) meansfor forming and intermittently changing a shed between the warp threads,which includes means for retaining a rst group of warps in a regionalong one edge of said tape at one side of the shed between alternatechanges of the shed while the shed in that region is formed by a secondgroup of warps, and means for retaining said second group of warps atthe other side of the shed between the other alternate changes of theshed while the shed in that region is formed by said rst group of warps;

(b) a weft laying needle having means for carrying two filler threadsone on each side of said needle, and eye means adjacent the forward endof the needle for leading each of said ller threads to the opposite sideof the needle;

(c) means for actuating said weft laying needle to project both llerthreads through the shed at each change thereof;

(d) a reciprocating knitting needle; and

(e) means for shifting the path of movement thereof from one side to theother of said laying needle, whereby each thread will be caughtalternately by said knitting needle at each change of shed and engagedin a loop of the other thread previously so caught.

2. In a needle loom of the class described, the combination of (a) meansfor forming and intermittently changing a shed between the warp threads,which includes means for retaining a first group of warps in a regionalong one edge of said tape at one side of the shed between alternatechanges of the shed while the shed in that region is formed by a secondgroup of warps, and means for retaining said second group of warps atthe other side of the shed between the other alternate changes of theshed while the shed in that region is formed by said first group ofwarps;

(b) a weft laying needle having a guide channel for one filler thread onits upper face and a second guide channel for another filler thread onits lower face, said weft laying needle having an eye adjacent itsforward end through which each filler thread passes to form a loop ofeach thread on that side of the needle opposite the guide channel forsuch thread;

(c) means for actuating the weft laying needle to project both illerthreads through the shed at each change thereof;

(d) a knitting needle at the side of the shed opposite said region;

(e) means for actuating said knitting needle back and forth in thelengthwise direction of the fabric; and,

'2?' 8 (f) means for shifting said knitting needle between needle, and amechanical connection between said link successive cycles of back andforth movement first and said shaft to produce a complete two-directionshift to one lside and then to the other of said laying needle cycle ofsaid link for every two revolutions of said shaft. whereby said knittingneedle will catch a loop first of one filler thread and then the otherand knit the 5 References Cited in the le 0f this Patent same with thenext previous loop. UNITED STATES PATENTS 3. The combination defined inclaim 2 wherein the means (c) includes a power-driven shaft and amechancal 2230636 Ch-1t$0m Sept' 20 1938 connection between said shaftand la iny needle to ro- 2816576 Shlmweu Dec' 17 1957 y e y P L3,056,431nenas et a1. oet. 2, 1962 duce a complete cycle of movement of saidlaying needle 10 into and out of the shed, and wherein the means (f) ofFOREIGN PATENTS Claim 2 illCllldeS a Shift link engaged With saidknitting 225,893 Australia Oct 22 195g

1. IN A NEEDLE LOOM OF THE CLASS DESCRIBED, THE COMBINATION OF (A) MEANSFOR FORMING AND INTERMITTENTLY CHANGING A SHED BETWEEN THE WARP THREADS,WHICH INCLUDES MEANS FOR RETAINING A FIRST GROUP OF WARPS IN A REGIONALONG ONE EDGE OF SAID TAPE AT ONE SIDE OF THE SHED BETWEEN ALTERNATECHANGES OF THE SHED WHILE THE SHED IN THAT REGION IS FORMED BY A SECONDGROUP OF WARPS, AND MEANS FOR RETAINING SAID SECOND GROUP OF WARPS ATTHE OTHER SIDE OF THE SHED BETWEEN THE OTHER ALTERNATE CHANGES OF THESHED WHILE THE SHED IN THAT REGION IS FORMED BY SAID FIRST GROUP OFWARPS; (B) A WEFT LAYING NEEDLE HAVING MEANS FOR CARRYING TWO FILLERTHREADS ONE ON EACH SIDE OF SAID NEEDLE, AND EYE MEANS ADJACENT THEFORWARD END OF THE NEEDLE FOR LEADING EACH OF SAID FILLER THREADS TO THEOPPOSITE SIDE OF THE NEEDLE; (C) MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID WEFT LAYINGNEEDLE TO PROJECT BOTH FILLER THREADS THROUGH THE SHED AT EACH CHANGETHEREOF; (D) A RECIPROCATING KNITTING NEEDLE; AND (E) MEANS FOR SHIFTINGTHE PATH OF MOVEMENT THEREOF FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER OF SAID LAYINGNEEDLE, WHEREBY EACH THREAD WILL BE CAUGHT ALTERNATELY BY SAID KNITTINGNEEDLE AT EACH CHANGE OF SHED AND ENGAGED IN A LOOP OF THE OTHER THREADPREVIOUSLY SO CAUGHT.